


Ledyba's Story

by Alablast



Series: Sara's Story [5]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pokemon - Fandom
Genre: Ledyba, Multi, Origin Story, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-06
Updated: 2019-08-10
Packaged: 2020-08-10 20:27:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,906
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20141500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alablast/pseuds/Alablast





	1. Ledyba's Story - Chapter 1

My name, before I _earned_ one, was… you know… I don't think I actually had one. We weren't really big on names. Ledyba are more scent-oriented than sound oriented. Everybody knew who I was by my scent, and that was that. I was just another baby Ledyba to keep fed and under control, so that one day I could join another swarm or help provide for this one. A name wasn't something important for me to have - if they wanted me to do something, the older Ledyba would just point at me and start telling me what I should do.

Not that they let me do much. The older Ledyba got to have all the fun - go out and gather food, search out nesting sites, fly patrols for threats such as violent weather - and I got stuck in the nest practicing how to use Reflect. The elders said I was lucky - everybody else had to do heavy lifting, or endless flying, or put themselves in danger, while I got to sit around and do whatever I felt like doing all day. Just as long as whatever I felt like doing was sitting in a group with other nestlings and practice making barriers.

What I _actually_ wanted to do was leave the nest and go do some heavy lifting, or some flying around, or get into a bit of danger. But the older Ledyba told me that wasn't safe, and not something I should risk myself on.

I managed to get my fair share of such things anyways, though. I found ways out of the nest that the older Ledyba weren't curious enough to discover - or guard. So I would slip out when they weren't looking and zip out into the forest, dancing from branch to branch with only the stars to tell me where to go or what to do.

Sometimes I would run into other Ledyba from the nest while I was exploring. They would get mad at me and demand I go back, telling me it wasn't safe by myself. Never mind that _they_ were out there by themselves.

So in addition to practicing Reflect to help shield the nest from threats, I also had plenty of opportunities to practice my other, more 'punchy' abilities. Like when I punched those Ledyba and flew off before they could make me go back.

It wasn't long before I had the best Mach Punch of the nest. Even the Matriarch was impressed - though she was quick to tell me I should work on making my barrier abilities just as strong. That way I could help a new swarm grow strong, and maybe even be a Matriarch myself one day.

That was supposedly the dream of all the other Ledyba - well, us girls, anyways. The boys dreamed of impressing a Matriarch, I guess, but the girls dreamed of _being_ the Matriarch. The leader of the swarm, the one in charge and able to make any decision she wanted. If the Matriarch felt like moving to a new nest, we moved to a new nest. If the Matriarch wanted a Ledyba to have a better home in the nest or a different job assignment, they got a better home in the nest or a better job assignment. The Matriarch had the freshest, most delicious food, and had as much of it as she wanted. The rest was divided up, again, as the Matriarch decided. It was the position every Ledyba wanted, and the one every Ledyba pushed themselves harder for. Their hope was that when the Great Swarming came in the summer they would have become strong and wise enough to lead a swarm of their own, and attract enough Ledyba to them to become a Matriarch themselves. Everybody in the swarm worked towards that goal.

Everybody but me.

I just didn't see the appeal - what would be the fun of having to deal with all that stuff? Okay, the Matriarch had those perks, but she also had to deal with everybody's problems. If a room in the nest had problems, the complaint went to the Matriarch. If the food tasted bad, or if there wasn't enough of it, then the Matriarch had to take care of it. If somebody had an unpleasant job, they complained about it to, you guessed it, the Matriarch. She was constantly kept busy with managing everything, and never seemed to have time to just leave the nest and enjoy the things outside it.

Who would want that kind of life? Not me.

So most nights I would wander around the forest. Sometimes I would find neat things and bring them back to the nest, but most of the time I ducked back into the nest with nothing to show but a few new scrapes and bruises from the rough branches or the unfortunate Ledyba that had tried to stop me. My skill at Reflect _did_ improve, some, but most of my improvement came in being able to punch out anyone that caught me.

I wasn't sure how long life went on like that - I wasn't very good at judging time then, and didn't really get that the moon faded and grew on a schedule - but the nights began to grow steadily warmer, until finally on one evening the Matriarch called us all together to say it was time to return to the Great Swarming.

We gathered the supplies we would need for the journey and lifted into the air, leaving the island I had grown up on far behind us as we flew to a gathering of Ledyba.

* * *

The Flygon stared down at the crowded meadow and smiled in glee. His wings moved slowly behind him, almost casually, as he took in the sight. There were Ledyba _everywhere_. Hundreds of them, just resting on the ground with dew collecting on their shells that glittered in the midday sun. They were all fast asleep. Completely unsuspecting. 

This was going to be _fun_.

He grinned and dived forward, letting his fall add to his speed as he reached out his claws to grasp towards the sleeping bugs. Energy gathered around him, draconic power swirling around him and adding to the force in his outstretched arm…

He saw glittering in the air as he neared the protective dome of the massed Ledyba's Reflect. He had watched as it had repelled birds and other mild nuisances. It was a very strong barrier, incredibly powerful and reinforced again and again during the night before the Ledyba had gone to sleep.

The Flygon impacted against the barrier and released the energy held around his claws with an enormous crash, the sound instantly waking every Ledyba in the field below. Sparks rippled in a shockwave along the dome, sending rainbows of light outwards from the impact… and…

The barrier held.

The Flygon grinned and pushed his wings harder, spiraling upwards towards the sun. His left wing moved slower, as if it took extra effort to move, or as if it hurt the Flygon to use that wing, but eventually he paused high above the shimmering barrier… and then he dove again, slamming into the barrier to the left of his first impact site, filling the air with another thunderous bang.

The Ledyba didn’t seem concerned. Some even started to go back to sleep. The barrier had been created by the amassed strength of the entire swarm. They were certain that no single Pokemon could ever break through it. The clearly deranged Flygon would give up before long and wander off - the older Ledyba had seen it happen enough times before to be unbothered by the display, even if it was significantly louder than the others had been. The younger Ledyba looked curious, but only that; none seemed worried. A few began to rise upwards to prepare to fix any damage the futile attack did manage to inflict to the barrier.

The wall of light wavered beneath the Flygon’s second impact, but just as the Ledyba expected, it held. The Flygon roared and ascended again, rising higher and higher into the sky. The Ledyba continued their own ascent too, but much more lazily, as if annoyed at being awoken but not concerned. They reached the barrier as the Flygon began to dive once more and started pouring their energy into it - and exclaimed in surprise as they discovered just how weak their barrier had become.

The Flygon grinned wildly at their panic as he drew rapidly nearer the wall of light, roaring out just before the impact…

A sound rang out as if an enormous glass pane had shattered, and the various shards of glass had then flown into and scratched down a chalkboard. The barrier _shattered_ around the Flygon, with an enormous piece of it simply falling away and dissolving into sparkles of various colors. Giant cracks stretched through the part of the barrier that remained… and the Flygon rocketed onwards, diving towards the ground just as quickly.

A second rumble filled the air as the Flygon impacted with the ground, sending dirt and grass flying from the force of his landing. A muffled "Booyah!" followed it, barely a whisper compared to the first sounds.

The Ledyba scattered from the impact site. The swarm panicked, taking to the air and flying towards the remains of the barrier that had suddenly turned from protecting them to trapping them. The Ledyba already in the air worked harder, trying to seal the gap before more threats entered, and the Ledyba at the edges of the barrier on the ground worked to open new gaps so that the frightened swarm could escape.

The dust cleared and the Flygon glanced over the chaos, the abnormal blue bands along his tail and antenna sparkling in the light. His right wing flapped in excitement, making him hover unsteadily over the small crater he had created, while his left wing hung limp. "Aw come on!” He glanced around with another wicked grin. “I heard this was where the strongest Ledyba would be; I expected at least one of you would be up for a fight! Don’t tell me she’s scared; isn’t there anybody willing to take on the Phooooboy, that’s a _lot_ of Ledyba…” The Flygon trailed off as he watched a mass of the fleeing swarm suddenly arc upwards and over, rushing back towards him as the rest of the Ledyba fled. The Flygon gulped, but his expression just as quickly changed to an excited grin as he launched into the air, flying to meet the oncoming challengers.

The crowd of Ledyba enveloped the Flygon, covering him in bodies. A cloud of dust spread outwards, obscuring the brawl… until the Flygon dove towards the ground with a Ledyba before him. He slammed the Ledyba into the hard dirt and bounced off, leaving the bug-type stunned behind him, while the rest of the mob of fighters chased after him. He _laughed_ and let out an excited ‘whoop!’ as he rose upwards again, back towards the hole he had made in the barrier. “Come on, let’s do this!”

The Ledyba had _just_ finished replacing the triangular hole with a temporary shimmer of light, a foundation that was weak on its own but something they could build on and strengthen, when the Flygon slammed back into it. It shattered again, letting the Flygon and his pursuers out into the open air. They converged again just outside the dome of light, though this time the Flygon stood his ‘ground’ and sent Ledyba after Ledyba flying, some into the open air, some into the barrier behind them. His attacks grew wilder as he fought, the Flygon clearly growing more and more excited.

More Ledyba rose through the hole, sending more annoyance through the workers trying to repair the gap as their efforts were once again disrupted, and the reinforcements joined in the battle. The Flygon dove downwards, grinning all the while, and disappeared into the trees beyond the edge of the barrier.

The Ledyba chased after.

The Flygon fought just as well in the forest as he did in the open air, maybe even better. Ledyba hurled out from the forest and back into the air as it flung combatant after combatant back out of the fight, creating a trail of stunned Ledyba as he retreated from the barrier. The trees didn’t fare much better - any that got in the way ended up bent beneath the force of his advancement. It was hard to call the Flygon’s movements a ‘retreat’, not when he was clearly winning against the mob of attackers.

But eventually one of the Ledyba got lucky - or clever - and landed a punch right against the Flygon’s left wing. That wing had been moving slower than the right as he spun and danced through the trees, as if the dragon was having trouble moving it, and it caused the Flygon to jerk as a spasm ran through his body. He fell to the ground, _hard_, his momentum carrying him forward and into another tree. He twitched his tail and slammed it into a Ledyba that followed too closely after him in an attempt to take advantage of his crash, sending the bug flying… but then his grin vanished.

A Ninetales was suddenly standing across from him, her fur a silvery blue. Her red eyes _glared_ down at the Flygon, and he gulped. “H-hey Sinori! Did you come to say hi to Constella, too?...”

The Ledyba hovered in uncertainty, not sure if they should continue to attack or not and clearly unnerved by the new arrival, though the Ninetales shook her head in exasperation. “She’s not even _here_ yet, ya big dingbat!”

A swirl of blue fire surrounded the two Pokemon, flowing right through the trees and yet leaving them unscathed. The Ledyba scattered, fleeing the flame… and when it cleared, both Pokemon were gone.


	2. Ledyba's Story - Chapter 2

We spent four days flying over the ocean. We found breaks along the way - small islands, large enough for us all to set down on and sleep the day away beneath a protective Reflect. Several of the older Ledyba carried a great net between them, too, and if we grew tired during the flight we could land in it to rest our wings for a time.

The ocean gave way to a pretty beach, and then a large forest… and after another half night of flying over trees we made it to the Great Swarm.

I didn't believe what I was seeing at first. Hundreds, _thousands_ of Ledyba were gathered in the meadow that stretched on as far as I could see. Individual Ledyba darted back and forth in numbers that put the swarm I lived in to shame. The stars seemed to glow brighter as they shone down on all the activity, twinkling in wordless encouragement to the Pokemon scurrying and flying about.

The Matriarch led us to the edge of the barrier and spoke with the Ledyba there. I didn't hear what they said, and I was too awestruck to pay any attention anyways. The barrier stretched upwards as far as I can see, and seemed impenetrable, though I noticed a bit of activity near the top where a few Ledyba worked along what looked to be giant cracks running through the otherwise unbroken screen. It was a magnificent Reflect, obviously the work of hundreds and hundreds of very skilled Ledyba, and I just stared at it while the Matriarch spoke with the guards. I suddenly understood why I had been encouraged to practice my own abilities so much - I still had no interest, but I had to admit it would be exciting to take part in creating something like that.

The guards finally accepted the Matriarch's words, and they took down a segment of the barrier to allow us through. They replaced it just as quickly, then led us through the huge field. They stopped before a small clearing, and the Matriarch began to drop the supplies she carried in the center of it. The rest of the Ledyba in my swarm did the same, and I was pulled in to help them. I wanted very much to explore and see everything in this new place, but the older Ledyba would have none of that. I spent most of the rest of the night helping to unpack and arrange things, then set up a large tent covered by the net we had used to rest on during our journey.

By the time we had finished our scent was strong in the clearing, and I knew I would be able to find my way back no matter how far into the Great Swarm I wandered. I suspected that might have been the point, as I realized just how easy it would be to become lost among the other swarms otherwise. The Matriarch told us we were free to explore and meet others, but that we were to return here to sleep. She singled out certain Ledyba from the older ones and gave them specific instructions, but I was far more interested in other things.

I flew aimlessly at first, just taking in the sights and scents. There were lots of other 'camp' areas where other Matriarchs had made temporary homes for their individual swarms, and while the individual styles and scents were interesting at first, I soon found myself exploring other areas. There were several areas set up for food and water to try, and I got to try several interesting flavors of foods - strangely shaped berries, exotic smelling saps, sweet honey with undertones of sour or spice. The Ledyba handling the food all seemed excited whenever I mentioned I liked something, and suggested I come by their camp if I was interested in living somewhere the particular food was common.

I found the offer odd at first, but as I explored more and heard it repeated I began to understand that one purpose of the Great Swarm was for the smaller swarms to exchange Pokemon. If a swarm needed more Ledyba to help support it, they could get some from swarms that had too many nestlings, or had members that were tired of their current swarm, or who wanted responsibilities or opportunities their current swarm couldn't offer.

And once I understood that, I also realized that the Great Swarm was essentially split into two styles of competitions. The first was of the various swarms competing against each other - the style of the camps, or the different flavor foods they had brought with them. They showed off in different ways to attract the interest of an individual Ledyba that might be looking for a new home, trying to entice stronger and healthier Ledyba to their swarm. And the second was the competitions between individual Ledyba. I came across events where Ledyba were engaged in using their Reflect ability for various goals, like redirecting as much water from the fast-flowing stream as they could, or to corral a group of rambunctious Ledyba that couldn't have been more than a week or two old. I saw other events designed to test the flying capabilities of individuals - who could be the first to get from one end of the Great Swarm to the other, or who could do it while carrying the most berries or young Ledyba, or who could navigate an obstacle course made up of stationary Ledyba holding various cloth flags. That one was particularly interesting, since I didn't understand what the flags meant at first, but I gradually realized that the racer was meant to pass one color on the left and the other on the right.

Participants would be given small bits of cloth depending on how well they did, or even a special berry if they managed to finish in a certain time. I also noticed other observers at the events, older Ledyba who seemed more interested in the contestants than in the races, and who would often approach a skilled participant after an event. I wasn't sure what their conversation involved, but I suspected it was similar to the conversation I had held with the berry vendors - an invitation to visit their swarm, or join it.

I considered trying out one of the races… but I flew above an even _better_ event while I was considering it.

Nearer to the center of the Great Swarm a field had been surrounded by a large rope. It made a rough circle, and inside two Ledyba fought each other. There seemed to be rules of some kind, but I didn't really grasp them - all I cared about were the punches being thrown back and forth by the two Ledyba in the ring.

The crowd was mostly made up of guys, and they made space for me as I landed and shoved towards the edge of the ring. There were a few other women there, including an older Ledyba I recognized from my own swarm, but they all seemed bored and unhappy, as if they were only there as some kind of punishment. I ignored them after a quick glance and focused on the fighting in the center.

The two combatants were _good_. They bobbed up and down in between flurries of punches with obvious skill, though it was just as obvious that the individual punches were fairly weak. The smell of excitement grew from the crowd as the fight went on, especially after a particularly well-aimed punch left the opponent staggering.

It was a lot of fun to watch, though I kept imagining what it would be like to be in the ring and throwing punches of my own. I noticed groups of Ledyba in the audience would cheer or boo when things went well or poorly for one of the fighters, and realized they must be there to encourage somebody from their swarm, but I didn’t know either of them enough to feel like cheering. I was just excited to see the fighting.

The fight ended suddenly, with one combatant delivering a series of blows to the other Ledyba’s back, driving into the tougher shell and slamming him into the ground. The crowd booed and cheered, but the fallen Ledyba didn’t get up. Instead his legs just fell out from beneath him and sprawled to the side in exhaustion. Another Ledyba - this one wearing a green cloth around one arm - flew into the ring and held up an arm of the victorious fighter. Cheers erupted from the crowd, with a few Ledyba even jumping up and down in excitement. One of the women just yawned, but they all seemed to take note of the Ledyba that had won.

I knew the fight was over, but I wanted to fight too. I flew forward into the ring, pausing before the two standing Ledyba. “That was awesome! I wanna try too; can I go next?”

The Ledyba with the green cloth just blinked at me and started to point off in another direction, but the victorious Ledyba answered first - by laughing. “_You_? You want to fight _me_? You’re just a nestling! It wouldn’t even be a fight, and I’m not a nursemaid. If you want a spanking that badly, go tell your Matriarch you’ve stolen berries and she’ll have somebody else whoop you; I’m here for _real_ fighters. Go back home and maybe come back in a few years when you’re old enough.”

The crowd around me started laughing, and I felt my blood grow hot at their jeering. I looked back at the winner of the fight, and instead of seeing a potential hero, or a fun combatant, I saw every one of the patrolling Ledyba from my own swarm that would tell me to go back to the nest and practice my reflects.

And there was only one response to that.

I don’t think he expected it at all, and he definitely didn’t expect it to be as strong as it was. My punch landed right in his face and knocked him back onto his shell. His arms flailed in the air in surprise as the crowd around me went silent. I felt the weight of the bored Ledyba’s eyes suddenly on me, taking a sudden interest… and I saw them look back at the Ledyba on the ground with a new calculation in their eyes.

The Ledyba with the green cloth smirked at me, as if sharing some joke that I didn’t get, and pointed again. “You can sign up with the Ledyba there; just look for somebody in a green band like this one.”

I glanced around at the crowd but was still too disgusted at the way the victorious Ledyba had treated me. “Never mind. I changed my mind.”

I didn’t wait for the Ledyba to reply before I jumped in the air and flew away from the ring, seeking something less upsetting to do instead.

I wandered around for a little bit, but nothing else caught my eye. Everything seemed to be winding down for the day as the stars grew dimmer overhead. Eventually light from the sun started to peek over the horizon, and I followed the scents back towards my swarm to settle in for a good day's sleep.

* * *

The Matriarch sighed as her lieutenants droned on with reports. A few nestlings were interested in the food they had brought to the Great Swarm, but none of any particular note. If they were short on bodies by the end they could recruit one or two, but otherwise they weren’t very interested. Several fast fliers had been revealed in the competitions before they had arrived, but most of those had already been wooed by other swarms. Nobody had shown any particular skill with Reflect, but they weren’t in any particular need in that area. They really needed a good forager; their island wasn’t the biggest one out there, but it was still pretty sizeable, and flying from one end of the island to the other could be a three or four day task. Somebody who was strong enough to carry back a lot of berries at once, or who could sniff out where they were; those were the Ledyba she was interested in. And the male she had assigned to watch the races had come up empty - it was still early in the Great Swarm, but they were a remote swarm and there usually weren’t any other swarms that would arrive after theirs did.

She looked back around her lieutenants and noticed a bored Ledyba near the back. Oh - the one assigned to watch the fights. She hadn’t gotten a report on that yet, and they were doing okay on guards, but it wouldn’t hurt to hear if anything interesting had occurred. Though it probably hadn’t - the fights were usually boring ones that just interested males, though she had to admit that she enjoyed watching them too. She would have liked to watch them herself, or even compete in it, but her duties as Matriarch never allowed her to do either. She had made the mistake of assigning males to watch the fights at first, as every young Matriarch tends to do, but quickly stopped when she realized it was impossible to get good reports out of them. They were just too excited about the events and were easily biased by things that didn’t mean much in regards to the competitor’s fitness as a candidate for their swarm - so she had ended up following the time honored tradition of giving it to a female Ledyba who had done the worst job the preceding year. She motioned towards that Ledyba with lazy motion. “What about the fighting ring?”

That Ledyba jerked, as if she had been falling asleep, and shook her head. “N-nothing too exciting. About what we’d usually expect; none of the fights today had any particularly strong or resilient fighters.”

The Matriarch sighed and started to move on - she hadn’t hoped for much, but pulling in a strong fighter this year could give her leverage at next year’s Great Swarm when he grew bored and wanted to join a swarm with Ledyba she _did_ need - but the Ledyba suddenly giggled. “Oh! I almost forgot - there _was_ a pretty good fighter near the beginning; he was on a winning streak until one of our nestlings flew up and knocked him out while the referee was in the middle of declaring his victory. It was the best part of the show; you should have seen his face.”

The Matriarch snapped back around to look at her lieutenant, suddenly calculating. “Which nestling?”

The Ledyba’s grin vanished under the Matriarch’s intensity, and she tried to remember. “Uhhh… the five-moon old one, the one that keeps sneaking out and ignoring her practices.”

The Matriarch grinned. _That_ was good news indeed - she knew about that particular nestling; a problem child, but one who admittedly _had_ developed quite a strong punch from all her truancies. The nature of the swarm society made it very difficult to know whose child a particular nestling was… but the Matriarch had recognized a lot of her own youthful tendencies in that nestling, and suspected she might be her daughter. That’s why she hadn’t come down too hard when she learned of a nestling wandering around and scaring the patrols - it had been too easy to remember her own boredom at practicing reflections for endless hours, and the excitement of exploring the forest and seeing all the new surprises it held. And she knew what kind of experience and strength that would give to a young Ledyba. Regardless of any relationship to the Matriarch, that nestling had the willpower to become a Matriarch herself one day, if she ended up growing wise enough.

The other swarms would only hear that a fighter had been knocked out by a nestling and dismiss him entirely, without realizing that a fighter had been doing well until a _strong_ nestling had clocked him. He wouldn’t have any luck getting into another swarm this year, so she could get him to join her swarm with a minimum of effort and haggling. She might even manage to unload a few of her problems onto his swarm if she played things right, as compensation for taking somebody that would now be viewed as an embarrassment. “_Excellent_. Go find his swarm tomorrow and give me a report on it, and what they might be looking for, but don’t seem too interested - pick four or five other swarms to check out too, and give me a report on all of them. We might be able to pick up a strong guard this year. If nothing else I bet he’ll be able to carry a lot of berries, but he might even be able to help better train our own foragers and guards. It’s not our primary goal this year, but it would be nice if we can take him with us when we leave." She paused as she mulled over a few extra thoughts, then nodded at her lieutenant.

"Good work. Make sure that nestling has the day off tomorrow night too; maybe we’ll get lucky and she’ll scrounge up some other potentials for us. Give her a pass for outside the dome too; who knows where she'll pay off at.”

The Ledyba blinked in surprise at the praise, but nodded. "Should I give her any special chores?"

"Just to be herself. That's already done enough, and I suspect she'll be more use if we _don't_ give her commands to ignore." The Matriarch looked back around her lieutenants, looking for the next report. What was it? Oh. Competition on berry stalls. She sighed, and prepared for the rest of the late morning meeting.


	3. Chapter 3

I woke the next evening as the first stars began to shine through the dim twilight. There was a mixture of activity around as some Ledyba were still fast asleep and others were busy at various tasks they tried to accomplish quietly. I felt hungry and a little thirsty, so I slipped towards the berries we had brought with us.

An older Ledyba approached me while I was looking for a berry I wanted, and after a second I recognized her from the fighting ring yesterday. She was carrying a plain brown cloth that smelled… _interesting_ was the only word that came to mind. Something metallic and sterile, with a bit of a smoky quality too.

"The Matriarch heard about what you did at the fighting ring yesterday."

I blinked and dropped the berry I had reached for, suddenly worried I was about to be punished. "H-he started it!"

"Relax, you're not in trouble. You actually did good; she thinks we can recruit the fighter you knocked out. He’ll be a good help to us if we can. So you’re getting a bit of a reward - take this.” She handed over the cloth and I took it carefully. I still wasn’t sure how I felt about the smell of it. “This will let you go in and out of the dome, if you want to. There are guard posts spaced around the dome, like the one we came in at; if you show them this they’ll open part of the barrier to let you in and out. It’s supposed to be for gathering berries and food to help feed everybody, but you don’t have to bring anything back if you don’t want to, or even go outside if you don’t. Just be yourself for today.” The older Ledyba gave me a reassuring grin and a pat on my back, then flew off to the other side of our clearing.

I stared at the cloth. The Great Swarm had a lot of stuff inside it that was interesting… but I had seen a lot of it yesterday. And I could see more of it tomorrow. I might not have the opportunity to see _outside_ tomorrow, and I suddenly wondered what was out there. Other Pokemon? Interesting berries that we didn’t have at home, trees with delicious sweet sap, other treasures I couldn’t even imagine? I clutched the cloth tighter and rose into the air, angling towards the edge of the dome. I wasn’t sure… but I couldn’t wait to find out.

The Ledyba guarding the exit just took a quick glance at the cloth I had and waved me through. He took down part of the reflective screen, then put it back up after I zipped through. I hovered in midair, realizing something was different but not sure what exactly it was… until with a bit of surprise I understood that it was _quiet_. Inside the Great Swarm there were constant sounds - buzzing of wings, scurrying of legs, distant cheers of excitement or groans of disappointment. Activity had been all around, even in the scent of complex messages passed between swarms and individual Ledyba, but outside the dome…

It was quiet.

I hovered there for a moment, marveling at the stillness disturbed only by the buzzing of my own wings… at least until a Noctowl somewhere in the forest broke the silence with its own hoot.

I picked a random direction - though not the one that the Noctowl’s sound had come from - and flew off, excited to see what was out there.

I wasn’t disappointed. There was so much to see! I thought the Great Swarm had held surprises, but the forests outside it held even more wonders for me to find. The trees smelled different than the ones back on the island I had left - not quite as sweet, but deeper, like it had more of the dirt and ground in it. I nibbled at a bit of the bark of some trees, but neither the bark nor the sap underneath tasted very appetizing. There were a few fruits that seemed familiar, and a few fruits that I hadn’t seen before. I didn’t see any berries - they had probably all been gathered up by other Ledyba and taken to help feed the Great Swarm while it was here - but I did find a few other treasures. A shiny rock with flecks of gold in it, a strange red and white orb with a button on it, even a piece of food inside some kind of clear wrapping. I spent a bit of time trying to get the food out, but I couldn’t manage to unwrap the crinkly substance covering it, so I dropped it back into the ground and continued exploring.

I was zipping along between trees when something hit me in the side of my head. Pain shot through my body and I plummeted to the ground, bouncing and rolling in the dirt. I caught sight of a decent sized rock bouncing on the ground beside me and realized something must have thrown it at me. I was still trying to figure out what had attacked me when I felt several more impacts, this time lighter ones directly against my chest. They drove the air from me, and I lay on the ground gasping for breath.

“Doesn’t feel so good when you’re the one being jumped by surprise, does it?” The voice came from above me, and I gradually recognized the voice - it was the fighter from the other day. I sucked in some air and rolled over, getting ready to fight back… but something else slammed into me and drove me further into the dirt. I struggled against it, but whatever it was held me down.

I stopped struggling and looked around instead. Four - no, five Ledyba were pinning me down on the ground, while the Ledyba from before hovered in the air above me with a look of pure malice.

“Stupid nestling. Do you have any idea what you did? I spent _years_ training for those fights! I beat all the other fighters, all the other challenges, and everybody saw me do it! I could have had my pick of swarms to live in, Matriarchs would have been _begging_ me to leave the Great Swarm with them - and then _you_ came along and ruined everything! Everybody saw you take a cheap shot after I was exhausted and knock me out, and now I’m just a joke. I can’t get into _any_ swarm; my own swarm doesn’t even want me! I’ll be lucky if I’m not left behind when the gathering ends to try and beg for a trainer to run off with. You ruined everything for me!” The Ledyba kicked dirt at me with those words, and the dust stung at my eyes. I tried to blink them away and tried to struggle again, then _froze_ as I smelled and heard something terrifying coming from behind me.

Fire.

“So it’s only fair I ruin everything for _you_.” I saw a reflection in his eyes as I felt warmth behind me - a reflection of another Ledyba holding some sort of torch, with flames licking up into the air.

“N-no!” I struggled, but the other Ledyba held me down. “That’s not true; the older Ledyba told me the Matriarch wants you to join up! She’s going to bring you into the nest; she knows how strong I am!”

The anger on the Ledyba’s face faded for a moment as he hesitated, as if considering my words… but then he shook his head and the hatred returned. “You’re lying! You’d say anything right now - you’re just a nestling; a Matriarch wouldn’t have any idea who you are. Do it!”

“NO!” I struggled even more, but it was useless. I felt the heat growing behind me and felt the Ledyba pinning me down suddenly pull at my shell, exposing my wings to the night air. I tried to move them out of the way, tried to struggle again, but the other Ledyba kept me trapped. I flinched as I felt the heat approach my wing… and then I felt the wood of the torch touch my wings.

It was… cold?

I blinked in surprise. There was no pain, no burning; just… cold wood. I’d landed on branches that felt warmer.

I heard the Ledyba around me give out startled gasps. The glow around me changed, becoming steady. It no longer flickered as if the flames were moving randomly; the edges of the glow ended cleanly against the darkness of night. And the color…

The color shifted from an angry reddish-orange to a soft, gentle blue.

The glow began to move, and I saw the fire drift into view, moving through the air above me. It wasn’t on the torch anymore. It was just a blob of blue fire floating along, almost lazily, as if it was perfectly normal for fire to float away like that and it wasn’t bothered one tiny bit.

The blue flame moved out into the trees, the glow fading until all we could see was the flame itself. Then it split in two, moving a few inches apart, and…

I flinched as the flames turned red once more. They started moving towards us at a slow pace, as if…

A Ninetales strode out of the darkness, two red eyes where the flames had been. Her fur was silvery blue, growing bluer at the tips of her tails. She moved forward until she was just a few feet from us and glared at the Ledyba in front of me. “Leave. Before you get hurt.”

Her voice was soft, gentle, but it still sent a shiver through me. It was just the way she said it - like it was simply a fact, an observation that we all needed to leave, or else we _would_ be hurt. Badly.

A new pair of bluish flames flickered to life beside the Ninetales’ head, hovering ominously beside her.

I was more than ready to do exactly what the Ninetales said, but the other Ledyba still held me down. The ringleader across from me was still filled with false bravado and took a step towards the Ninetales. “No, you leave! This is our land, the land of the Great Swarm! This is for Ledyba, not for you - you are not welcome here!”

The Ninetales tilted her head as if in amusement, and…

I didn’t even _see_ the flames move. One moment they were hovering beside her head, and the next the Ledyba was simply on fire. Bluish flames danced over his shell and sent smoke curling up into the sky. He _shrieked_ in pain and spun in a circle, then rolled over to try and smother the fire in the dirt beneath him. It didn’t work - the fire simply moved from his back to his belly. He continued to shriek and yell, and…

The flames burning him vanished suddenly. One second he was on fire, and the next second the two orbs of blue fire hovered beside the Ninetales again. The Ninetales shifted her gaze away from the Ledyba still rolling on the ground to one of the ones holding me down. “Leave. Before **more** of you get hurt.”

I felt the pressure against me suddenly vanish and heard wings buzzing as the other Ledyba fled. I started to get up and prepared to fly off too, wanting no part of the fire the Ninetales controlled so effortless, but her gaze shifted to me. “Not you.”

She took a few more steps toward me and sat down. Her tails curled lazily around her, pausing only long enough to flip the rolling Ledyba back onto his feet. She waited while he flew off before looking back at me. “You don’t belong with a swarm. There is no place for you among the other Ledyba, and no swarm that will show you the wonders and mysteries you seek. But there is one who will - there is a trainer here who needs you, who will take you to the ends of the earth just as you desire. You will see incredible wonders with her, fight in many battles, and make friendships you’ve never dreamed of. She arrived earlier today.” The Ninetales looked away from me and up to the sky, towards the south, as if looking at something far away. “Her Umbreon is in the forest now, searching for a Ledyba to join her team.” She paused before smiling gently down at me. “That Ledyba is meant to be _you_. Go find him. Tell him Sinori sent you to him, and to Sara.” She grew still for a moment, then smiled. “I’ll see you again soon, Constella.”

And just like that the Ninetales was gone. The night was dark again, lit only by the gentle light of the stars filtering through the trees.

I blinked again and rose back up into the air, wings fluttering enough so I hovered just above the ground. I glanced back at the Ledyba who had attacked me, wondering briefly if I should help him, but saw that his wounds were gone. His shell looked just as it had when he had first approached me, completely unburned.

I turned and flew towards the south, keeping alert for any unusual scents. I wasn’t sure what an Umbreon smelled like - or looked like, or sounded like, or what an Umbreon even was. But I was sure going to find out.

I found the Umbreon after a few hours of searching. His eyes were as red as the Ninetales, and he looked even scarier… but his appearance was nothing more than an appearance. He was nice, especially when I mentioned Sinori - he had lots of questions about her, and seemed almost sad when I couldn’t give him any answers. But he was nice, and seemed impressed at my punches.

He brought me to see Sara, his trainer - and she was nice, too. She showed me many wonderful things - the buildings the humans lived in, the beautiful lights they had made, some of the many foods they had. Sweet saps, honeys, berries. She offered to show me more, if I would be friends with Opal - her Umbreon - and help her fight other Pokemon.

I grinned at that. As if the chance to punch and fight _wasn’t_ part of the appeal.

I left with her, with only a brief glance back at the glittering dome growing up out of the forest. I fought other trainers with her, and was given a name after a few battles - Constella, which Sara said was short for the constellations of stars that the dots on my shell reminded her of. I became friends with her and the rest of her Pokemon - in addition to Opal there was a Cherubi named Sonata, who seemed a little nervous around me but was nice once I got to know her, and a Vibrava named Phoenix who I became both friend and competition to. Together we saw many other cities, and gym battles, and a great championship battle - like the ring battles I saw during the Great Swarm, only on a much, much larger scale. And we were _winning_ \- at least, we were up until the point we stopped, and Sara withdrew us from the competition. Phoenix and I are still certain we would have won if we had stayed.

But that is a story for somebody else to tell.

* * *

Clara woke with a start. Something… something was wrong. What was it? Had it been a bad dream? A nightmare? Something else, some warning at the edges of her senses that had pulled her from her sleep?

She shifted in the bed, reaching out with her mind to touch Flen’s…


End file.
